I Wanted to Give You Everything
by Renewal
Summary: RickxShane, AU. After the world starts to fall back into something resembling normalacy, Rick decides to renew his vows...with Shane.


Rick Grimes stood in front of the mirror and adjusted his tie to distract himself from the nerves that were threatening to overcome him. Running his fingers through his dark curls, he turned sideways and examined himself in the mirror. Less than six months after society had fallen back into something almost, vaguely, resembling order, and he had already put on a good ten pounds. He grunted and pulled at his tux, silently admonishing himself for eating with such reckless abandon since he had reached the island off the coast of North Carolina which he now called home. Oh well, nothing he could do about it now. Unable to distract himself by nitpicking at his clothes and body any longer, Rick walked over to the door of his hotel room and peaked out into the hall and spotted Father Morris, the island's reverend.

"F-f-father Morris," Rick stuttered in a failed attempt to sound calm, "how long until I can come downstairs?"

"Patience, my dear boy," Father Morris chuckled, wagging his finger at Rick. "I'll come for you when it's time."

Nodding, Rick slipped back into the hotel room and shut the door behind him. Hadn't he been patient enough? Today was a day that had been a long time coming. A day that seemed almost fated to happen for all the obstacles that could have derailed, it but didn't: a gunman's bullet, the rise of the walkers, and a messy love triangle. But still the day had arrived: the day Rick would stand before the love of his life yet again and renew the vows they had made to each other so many years ago. Vows that had been twisted, broken, and even forgotten at times, regardless of the strength of the love upon which they were built.

Running his hand over the stubble on his chin while walking over to the window, Rick couldn't help but smile. Yes, he could wait a little longer. Hell, when the world had gone to shit, he had worried this day would never come. And when he found out that the only true love he'd ever had betrayed him by fucking his so-called best friend, he had known it wouldn't. But Rick had been wrong, and very glad to be so. No matter how much that act of infidelity had rocked him to his core and made him question everything he thought he knew about love, Rick couldn't just turn off his heart and walk away from his twin flame like their love, and the promise they made the night of his first wedding to someday renew their vows, had never happened. But Rick Grimes was a man of his word. The night nearly fifteen years ago on which he had made Lori his wife he had spoken vows that, through it all, still meant the world to him, and damnit, he was renewing them tonight.

Staring absentmindly out the window and across the island, Rick found himself slipping into a daydream about that day, the day that he took Shane Walsh by the hand into a closet in the church in which he was to marry his best friend Lori and kissed the tears off his face and promised Shane that he loved him and that one day, when the circumstances of their lives were different, he and Lori would go their separate ways and Rick would belong to Shane and Shane alone. After a few passionate and frantic kisses, Rick and Shane had exchanged their own vows before Rick's passionless ceremony with Lori.

It was hard to believe that so much time had passed since then and today was finally Rick's chance to stand up in front of God and whoever else and declare that he loved Shane Walsh. Just the thought made Rick's grin spread even further across his face. He had promised Shane that when times were different, their relationship would blossom, and geeze, were times different. The ultra-religious family and conservative small town which had forced Rick and Lori to hide their respective gayness and lesbianism and had very nearly turned Shane into a bitter, broken man by keeping the man he loved from openly loving him had been washed away by the heavy footfalls of the dead over the past three years since the world had fallen apart. Yes, Rick nodded happily to himself, times were different and in a matter of minutes, he'd be marrying the man he'd loved for his entire life. What was five more minutes of waiting?

Right at that moment, Father Morris opened the door and peeked his head into the room. "Rick, my boy? It's time for you to come down, it's almost showtime," Father Morris said excitedly, his warm smile spreading to the corners of his eyes as he held and arm out for Rick. His palms suddenly very sweaty and his stomach suddenly very jumpy, Rick nodded and walked over to Father Morris who led the way down the hallway.

It was finally time for Rick Grimes to make Shane Walsh his husband.


End file.
